Under the curving Sky, standing on the shore

I am breathing.

Concentrating on one breath at a time.

In and out, I see the exhalation escape my lips, warmer than the air.

A visible reminder that though I feel empty, I am alive.

The Sky is silent.

But the Lake is loud.

In the dark, the swirling unrelenting anxiety hits me.

Tears come, and I want to put a cork in the feelings, to drown in a glass.

The tears freeze on my face and I look up.

The Moonlight bounces off the darkness of the night and I hear the Lake sigh and the Wind let loose a howl.

The urge to step in, to be lost to the waves forever is powerful.

One more night.

The feel of it all, dark and cold.

But there is magic all around.

The Earth is breathing with me.

I try to pull it inward.

One breath at a time.

The Stars start falling from the sky and sparking off the Lake,

Or is it the contents of my brain? I can’t tell anymore.

One more night, one more breath.

In and out.

Matching my breath to the roll of the water on the rocks,

I stand still and listen.